6 women bikers ride across the country to spread the message of gender equality

Six women on Royal Enfield Bullet bikes are raising eyebrows as they cut across the country spreading the message of gender equality The women Lavanya N Merilyn Hamlet Surya Ravindran Seetha V Nair Febina K B and Sangeetha Sikhamani who are all employees of Federal Bank have started off from Ernakulam on August 1 Their 20day expedition will take them across Ernakulam Coimbatore Salem Bangalore Chittradurg Hubli Kolhapur Pune Mumbai Surat Ahmedabad Mount Abu Udaipur Chittorgarh and Jaipur and will culminate in DelhiFebina KAngels rev upThe motorcycle angels as they are dubbed who says angels have wings sometimes they have wheels too will have rest days in Kochi Coimbatore Bangalore Mumbai Ahmedabad and New Delhi During this time they will meet women achievers who will motivate and felicitate them In Coimbatore they are slated to meet S Lakshmi Deputy Commissioner of Police CoimbatoreSurya RThe equality messageThe women will ride for approximately 55 hours a day beginning at 630 am and winding up by 12 pm Said Sangeetha Sikhamani This idea germinated when Merilyns bike riding video went viral We were heartened by the positive response Last year the bank had organised a car rally in ErnakulamSangeetha SRajanarayanan N vicepresident marketing and investor relations of the bank said We have 40 per cent women employees overall There are women in every cadre of the bank Through this bike ride we want to pass on a message that we are an equal opportunity employer There are some stopovers on the 20day route which will be used to promote events like the bikers meeting women achievers who will felicitate them This will reinforce the message of womens empowerment and equalityLavanya NA Mumbai stopBiker Merilyn Hamlet said I started biking out of curiosity A friend of mine bought a bike and I tried it I was hooked it was the beginning in fact of several bike trips In the midst of their journey these women are scheduled to reach Mumbai in the second half of the day on August 11 at Dadar Club Banquet Hall In Mumbai the riders will be staying at a Vile Parle hotel for a day after which they vroom towards SuratSeetha NThe women are enthused about the interactions on the way With one day gone their appetite has been whetted by the curious questions thrown at them When we talk to people we will learn about different perspectives especially of the women who we hope to inspire or motivate in our very small way Listening to their life stories or anecdotes and subsequently ourshellip it will be good to exchange views In the end equality and power may mean different things to different women they saidThe glass ceilingSeetha V Nair said that an exchange can spark an interest in riding bikes for some women She added My affinity for motorcycles started 18 years ago when I came across an article that spoke of lady managers who rode motorcycles It is not just the mission or the destination that is all important Mobike riding itself is such an all boys culture club that even inadvertently women riding a bike are making a political statement There are glass ceilings to smash and bastions to storm and this is not just in the corporate worldFor some like Lavanya N mobike riding is more personal She said I discovered the motorcycle in my desire to travel and in my quest to do something different That sounds profound a bit like Zen and the art of motorcycle riding In this instance make that women and the art of motorcycle ridingCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates